Ouzo
The Greek anise drink that turns milky white as soon as water is added. What ouzo is, what causes that effect, how to drink it and which glass to use.
Anise drinks with their own page
The ouzo bottles themselves appear further down under the types. These related drinks do have their own page on glazen.nl.
Sambuca
The Italian anise liqueur, with star anise and elderflower. Much sweeter than ouzo, with the same milky-white effect.
Like sambuca →Fernet-Branca
Not an anise drink but an herbal bitter with a strong menthol note, served after a meal just like ouzo.
About Fernet-Branca →
Underberg
The German herbal bitter in a 2 cl bottle, and the best-known digestif outside the anise category.
About Underberg →Our drinks page lists all the brands we cover, from liqueur to whisky.
Why ouzo turns milky white
Ouzo is a Greek distilled drink whose flavor is dominated by anise. Its base is neutral alcohol, which is redistilled with aniseed and often also fennel, star anise, coriander or mastic. It is a protected name: only Greece and Cyprus may use it. Most of it comes from the island of Lesbos, particularly from the town of Plomari.
Its best-known characteristic is what happens when you add water: the clear drink suddenly turns milky white. This is called the ouzo effect, and it is not a trick. Anethole, the flavor compound in anise, dissolves in alcohol but not in water. When you dilute the drink, the compound comes out of solution and floats as microscopic droplets that scatter light. Exactly the same thing happens with pastis, raki and absinthe.
In brief
Four anise drinks side by side
Among ouzo varieties, the main difference is the alcohol percentage. Then there is its French cousin, which does exactly the same thing but tastes different.
Ouzo 12
The best-known ouzo outside Greece, with twelve botanicals in the recipe. Full of anise with a smooth, slightly sweet finish.
Ouzo 12 Gold
Bottled at a slightly lower ABV, making it softer and rounder. The most approachable bottle in this lineup.
Plomari Ouzo
From Plomari on Lesbos, the place where most of this drink comes from. Drier and more pronounced than Ouzo 12.
Ricard Pastis
Not ouzo but pastis from Marseille. The same milky-white effect, but with licorice as well, making it fuller and sweeter.
Raki from Turkey, sambuca from Italy and absinthe all do the same thing with water, but taste quite different from one another.
Anise, with herbs around it
Anise & fennel
Bright, direct anise, with fennel and sometimes a spicy or citrusy note underneath. There is little to look for: this is a drink that makes itself known immediately.
Lightly sweet and cooling
Lightly sweet, with a cooling sensation from the anethole. With water, it becomes softer and the accompanying spices really come forward.
Long and dry
A long, dry finish in which the anise lingers. That is exactly why ouzo works so well with fatty meze and fried fish.
Flavor profile of Ouzo 12 at 38%. Gold is softer and scores lower for intensity; pastis scores higher for sweetness because of the licorice.
Three ways to drink ouzo
In Greece, ouzo is almost never drunk neat, and certainly not as a shot. It is sipped slowly, with water and food.
With water and ice
5 cl in a small glass, topped up with an equal amount of cold water. The drink turns milky white and softer, and the accompanying spices open up. Add the ice only after the water; otherwise the anethole will clump.
Glass: tumbler →With meze
A bottle of ouzo with a table full of small dishes: grilled octopus, fried anchovies, tzatziki and olives. The anise cuts through the fat, and that is the whole reason this pairing exists.
More questions →Ice-cold, but not as a shot
Some Greeks pour it straight from the refrigerator, without water, into a small glass and sip it. Downing it is not a Greek custom: at 38%, that is mostly a waste of the drink.
Glass: small glass →Ouzo in cocktails
Ouzo is rarely used in cocktails: the anise overwhelms almost anything you add to it. It does work as a small part of an aperitif.
Aperitif cocktails
The collection of pre-dinner drinks that ouzo fits right into.
Summer cocktails
Long, refreshing drinks with plenty of ice. A splash of ouzo adds a spicy note.
Anise spritz
Prosecco and sparkling water over ice, with a small splash of ouzo instead of liqueur.
Making shots
The complete collection of shot recipes, from layered shots to ice-cold shots straight from the freezer.The right glass for ouzo
In Greece, ouzo is served in a narrow, straight-sided glass. A small tumbler or a long drink glass works just as well. These are the glasses we recommend ourselves.
Everything else you wanted to know about ouzo
Can't find your question here? View our cocktail recipes or get in touch.
To the cocktail recipes →